An Easter message from Bishop Choby

On Easter Sunday, the Risen Lord leaves the tomb and cross behind. Pictured above is art work at the Catholic Pastoral Center in Nashville. Photo by Rick Musacchio

My Dear People of God,

In the Gospel reading for the Fifth Sunday of Lent we heard the story of the death of Lazarus and the pain that Jesus experienced at the loss of his beloved friend. Jesus wept. Not as a show for others, but in the sense of deep sadness that all of us can experience from time to time. Of course the story of Lazarus also shows the divine nature of Jesus, who after praying to our Heavenly Father, calls to his dead friend and instructs him to come out of the tomb.

The message could not be clearer: Trust in the Lord for “I am the resurrection and the life.”

In the upcoming Holy Week we will observe and celebrate the mysteries of our Lord’s passion, crucifixion and death, bringing us face to face with the consequences of sin – death. Only through our relationship with Jesus do we find life in the Resurrection that follows on Easter.

I want to encourage all of the people of the diocese to enter into the spirit of Holy Week and the Easter celebration so you can reflect particularly on the realities of your own lives in light of the message that we find in the Gospel account of Jesus’ death and resurrection.

Life is full of unexpected events and challenges that come our way. As you are aware after the many updates that have been published by the diocese, I have been quite seriously ill after sustaining a fall at my home on February 7.

First of all, thank you to all the people of the diocese who have been praying so earnestly for my recovery. Those prayers are a great support to me, and I’m sure, a great aid to those who are caring for me.

I know that there is still something of a journey for me to complete recovery from these challenges. In fact, my doctors are working to develop the course of treatment going forward.

My confidence that it will lead to what God has in mind to accomplish through me remains strong.

As strange as it may seem, I consider the experiences that have come my way through this accident to be a great blessing in my life. Perhaps sometime in the future, I can reflect on that blessing in more detail. It is the most difficult challenge of my life, but it has brought to reality God’s love in my life.